Woman sentenced in slaying of Santa Cruz homeless man

SANTA CRUZ -- A 44-year-old Danish woman was sentenced to three years of probation and 360 days in jail Tuesday on charges of being an accessory to the murder of a homeless man who was beaten to death.

Tina Anderson was among five people, all homeless, arrested in connection with the slaying of 51-year-old Charles Robert Powers, a homeless man who was killed near Depot Park in Santa Cruz on Nov. 16. Anderson was one of four people who pleaded guilty to lesser charges.

Anderson appeared calm and quiet throughout the court proceedings as prosecutor Rob Wade, defense attorney George Gigarjian and Santa Cruz County Superior Court Judge Ariadne Symons discussed the terms of her sentencing.

Prosecutors say the fifth person, Jeremiah James Long, 27, was the attacker who beat Powers to death. Anderson, along with the others arrested, testified in court against Long this month in a preliminary hearing. The defendants are expected to testify again during Long's murder trial, which is slated for January.

Anderson was given credit for 254 days in jail while she was in custody. After she finishes her sentence, She is expected to be deported back to Denmark by federal authorities because she is not a U.S. citizen.

Symons ordered Anderson to leave her contact information with probation officers before deportation and to cooperate with the prosecution. If Anderson leaves the country before the trial begins, it's unclear whether federal authorities will allow her to re-enter the U.S. to testify. Prosecutors have said it would be a significant hurdle.

"She's been told to come back," Wade said outside of court. "Our challenge is going to be to deal with the federal government as far as arranging that."

Throughout the court proceedings, Anderson swayed back and forth as she stood next to her attorney. Before sentencing Anderson, Symons asked her if she would like to say anything about the sentencing terms.

"I'm sorry," she said quietly.

Symons asked her to elaborate beyond that. Symons shed some light on Anderson's past during the questioning, mentioning that Anderson was once married and had a daughter.

Anderson twisted her chains and shed tears as she was being addressed but declined to say anything else.

Anderson showed significant change from the time she entered jail to her court appearance, her defense attorney said.

While in jail, she attended Alcoholics Anonymous meetings. As a part of her sentence, she was ordered not to drink alcohol.